Ski binding for a cross-country or touring ski

ABSTRACT

A ski binding for a cross-country or touring ski is shown, with a boot (100) being introduced into a holding cup (40) and being held therein by a locking pin (32), when a pawl (60) prevents the reciprocal movement of holding cup (40) and locking pin (32). The design of a double groove (43a, 43b) enables a locking even when an obstacle (13) prevents the complete lowering of the bottom (41) of the holding cup (40).

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a ski binding for a cross-country or touringski comprising a bearing block for its fastening on the ski andcomprising a holding cup to receive the front end area of a ski boot,which carries at its front end area a bar approximately U-shaped in thetop view, the crossbar of which U-shaped bar is spaced from the tip ofthe ski boot and forms an opening with the tip, such that when the skiboot is inserted into the binding, its sole edge rests on top and bottomon the holding cup, which in the open position of the binding isspring-biased in the direction of a pivoting upwardly about a horizontaltransverse axle lying in front of the boot and supported in walls of thebearing block and can be moved downwardly into a closing position by apivoting caused by means of the ski boot, in which closing position atleast one locking pin of the binding penetrates from below through theopening on the ski boot and a pawl pivotal about a further horizontaltransverse axle is locked by means of a projection cooperating with agroove and in this manner fixes the holding cup and the locking pinrelative to one another.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Such a device has become known for example from Austrian Patent No. 386127, which has proven to be successful in practice. The single littledisadvantage observed up to now is that at times ice and hard snow existin the very last portion of the closing path of the holding cup, so thatonly after removal of the obstacle or by applying considerable forcewill it be possible to move the U-shaped bar on the ski boot completelyover the locking pin supported on the ski.

The purpose of the invention is thus to avoid the disclosed disadvantageand to guarantee the capability for the binding to function regardlessof whether the holding cup can actually be pressed down entirely when askier closes the binding with his or her ski boot.

To attain this purpose, the invention provides that through at least onefurther groove and/or a further projection lockable to the pawl, atleast one further closing position of the binding is defined, in whichthe base of the holding cup, viewed in elevational direction, is spacedfarther from the base plate of the bearing plate than in the firstlocking position of the pawl.

Also the European Patent Application 176 951 discloses a device havingtwo locking positions for the pawl, however, it does not disclose asolution to the task which is the basis of the invention. The twolocking positions of the known device correspond, namely, on the onehand, with the position during use and, on the other hand, with the openposition of the binding. Whereas two closing positions, of which thefirst is reached even if ice prevents the total approach of locking pinand holding cup, has up to now not been suggested.

The structural design of the thought of the invention can obviously beaccomplished with the same effect in such a manner that two grooves onthe holding cup are associated with a projection on the pawl, whichgrooves cooperate alternatively with the projection, or that, in thereverse, alternately two projections on the pawl are locked in a grooveon the holding cup.

The construction of the binding of the invention has the result that thecross-country skier can immediately go onto the skiing path even if thebinding first only reaches a locking position whereat the locking pin isnot yet quite fully moved in. After a few steps, the at first hinderingice is removed and the pawl arranged on the same pivot part as thelocking pin locks in the position whereat the locking pin has penetratedas far as possible into the opening at the front of the boot.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further details of the invention will now be described in greater detailin connection with the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view taken along the line I--Iof FIG. 2 of the ski binding of the invention in the stepping-inposition;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the ski binding in the skiing position;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the holding cup of the ski binding with insertedski boot;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the ski binding in theskiing position (first locking position);

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the ski binding in theskiing position (second locking position); and

FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragment of a view corresponding to FIG. 4, butshowing a modified pawl and bar construction.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The drawings show a ski binding for a cross-country or touring ski 1 anda ski boot 100 therefor. A bearing block 10 is mounted on the upper sideof the ski 1 by means of screws mounted at reference numeral 2. Thebearing block 10 includes a base plate 11 having two walls 12 startingat the front end of the base plate 11, which front end faces the tip ofthe ski, and extending approximately to the center of the base plate 11and carrying a horizontal transverse axle 20 in the latter area.

A pivot part 30 is mounted on the transverse axle 20, which pivot partrests with its base 31 on the base plate 11. The base 31 has at its endremote from the transverse axle 20 a locking pin 32. A holding cup 40 isalso mounted on the pivot axle 20, the base 41 of which holding cup hasan opening 41b for the locking pin 32. The sidewalls 42 of the holdingcup 40 are connected at its front part to a crossbar 43 carrying grooves43a and 43b. Guide bars 45 are connected to the top of the sidewalls 42.

An extension of the pivot part 30, which extension projects upwardlyfrom the transverse axle 20, carries a transverse axle 50 at its upperend, to which axle a pawl 60, designed as a two-arm lever, is hinged.The arm of the pawl 60 facing the holding cup 40 terminates in aprojection 61 forming a locking nose and on the side of its second arm,which side does not face the ski 1, a recess 62 is provided.

For a spring 70 around the transverse axle 20, which spring biases theholding cup 40 and the pivot part 30 in a spread apart relation,suitable cavities exist in the base 31 of the pivot part 30. A torsionspring 80 extending about the transverse axle 50 biases the pawl 60 in aclosing direction toward the holding cup 40.

An elastic element 90 is inserted in the front part of the bearing block10. It is supported on the pivot part 30. The elastic element 90 has abore in order to be able to insert unhindered a screw duringinstallation of the binding on the ski 1.

The ski boot 100 (compare FIG. 3) to be inserted into the binding has asole extension in its front area, which sole extension forms a slide-inpart into the holding cup 40 and consists of a U-shaped bar withextensions 101a and a crossbar 102b, which U-shaped bar is cast with itslegs 102a into the extensions.

The basic idea of the invention can best be understood from FIGS. 4 and5. If a piece of ice or hard snow 13 gets under the base 31 of theangular pivot part 30 ending in the locking pin 32 and carrying the pawl60, then the pawl 60 with its projection 61 first engages only the firstgroove 43a, viewed in closing direction, of the bar 43. The base 31 ofthe pivot part 30 projects in this position slightly downwardly over thebase 41 of the holding cup 40. Also the locking pin 32 is not yet in itsend position above the opening 103 defined by the sloped front side ofthe ski boot 100 and the crossbar 102b. However, this hardly influencesthe skier since the binding is closed and thus the ski boot 100 can befixed in the holding cup 40 of the binding. The base 41 of the holdingcup 40 rests during each sliding step on the obstacle 13 consisting ofice or hard snow until same is--generally after a few steps--removedfrom or rather pressed out of the binding. The pawl 60 engages now withits projection 61 the second groove 43b of the bar 43, viewed in theclosing direction, thus reaching the end position shown in FIG. 5. Thelocking pin 32 has in this end position completely penetrated into theopening 103 on the ski boot 100 and the base 31 of the pivot part 30 andthe base 41 of the holding cup 40 extend in the swung-down position ofthe ski boot 100 (sliding phase) substantially flush to one another.

A guide plate 110 with guide grooves 111 for the ski boot 100 isprovided behind the ski binding and following the ski binding. Designand function of such guide plates are known by themselves, so that thesedo not need to be discussed any further.

The invention is not to be limited to the illustrated and describedexemplary embodiment. If needed, it is possible, as mentioned in thebeginning and as it is also claimed, to provide several groovesdetermining different locking positions. Furthermore, it is alsopossible, as has also been described and claimed, to provide severalprojections 61 engageable in a groove. Also the cooperation of severalprojections with several grooves 43a, as shown in FIG. 6 is supposed tofall under the protection of the patent.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:
 1. In a ski binding for across-country or touring ski, comprising a bearing block on a base platewhich is adapted to be fastened onto the ski and comprising a holdingcup adapted to receive a front end region of a ski boot, which ski boothas at its front end area a generally U-shaped bar, a crossbar portionof the U-shaped bar being spaced from a tip of the toe portion the skiboot and forms an opening with said tip such that, when the ski boot isinserted into the binding, top and bottom sole edges of the ski bootengage top facing and bottom facing surfaces provided on the holdingcup, a spring means for biassing the holding cup toward an open positionof the binding in an upward direction about a horizontal transverselyextending axle located in front of the ski boot, the holding cup beingpivotally supported between upstanding walls of the bearing block and isadapted to be manually pivotally moved downwardly into a closed positionby means of the ski boot, in which closed position at least one lockingpin of the binding penetrates from below through the opening defined bythe bar on the toe of the ski boot, and a pawl pivotally supported formovement about a further horizontal transversely extending axle and hasa projection thereon cooperatively received in a groove provided on theholding cup to thereby lock the holding cup and the locking pin relativeto one another and in the closed position of the binding, theimprovement wherein at least one of a further groove is provided on theholding cup and a further projection is provided on the pawl fordefining at least one further closed position of the ski binding, saidfurther closed position occurring when a bottom of the holding cup isspaced a larger distance from the base plate than in the first-mentionedclosed position of the ski binding.